monster storm. the northeast bracing this morning for one of the strongest blizzards in years. more than 2 feet of snow expected to bury some cities. the big questions now, when will it come and how long will it last? the president under pressure agrees to tururn over classifie memos to some members of congress detailing how and when american born al qaeda leaders may be killed by the government. will the controversy threaten the president's nominee for cia director when he faces lawmakers today. and skin is out. the fashion warning sent to some of the biggest names in music ahead of sunday's grammy award.

but will the stars cover up today, thursday, february 7th, 2013. and good morning, everyone. welcome to "today" on thursday morning. i'm savannah guthrie. >> i'm matt lauer. we're starting to get a much clearer picture this morning of exactly where that powerful nor'easter is headed and just how much snow we're going to be seeing. >> a lot of people bracing themselves. it's expected to start tomorrow morning and could make travel an absolute nightmare. some airlines are already waiving penalties for customers who have flights booked to the northeast in the coming days and want to make changes. al has been monitoring all these different models and we're going to get to him in a moment. >> when you look at that satellite image, it's the two systems that come together that

will create the problem. also ahead a controversy raging over a fraternity party labeled racist by some students. we're going to let you decide and ask the question, should the fraternity that threw it be kicked off campus. >> we're all guilty of this called cyber loafing. you go online and look up things that aren't needed. what some companies are prepared to do about it. >> cyber clacking policies. first al is keeping an eye on this very powerful storm as it bears down on the northeast. al, what can you tell us? >> we're looking at a classic nor'easter, as it comes across the northern part of the system, we have winter weather advisories, storm warnings, winter storm watches and blizzard watches for parts of new england. heres what's going on. we have these two systems. plus we're going to be looking at stormy seas, gale warnings

and hurricane wind watches, wind 75 miles an hour. that will cause coastal flooding. two systems. here we government one to the south, a lot of activity. severe weather through the southeast. a lot of cold air drawn from this system, this clipper coming across. energy is transferred to the system offshore and continues to push off. these lines of isobars, lines of pressure, that's why they are packed so tight. that's where the strong winds are going to be and the heaviest snow is going to be. here is what we're expecting. anywhere from about 6 to 9 inches from michigan all the way into new york state and central new jersey. right along the line, new york city and long island, 9 to 12 inches. but look at this, manchester, portland, boston, providence, just to the east of hartford, we're talking about 24 plus inches of snow. this is going to be a monster storm, over 10 million people affected by this. where does it fall? look at some of the top five boston snowfalls, february 6th

through 7th, 1978, 27.1 inches, it's gunning for that. we'll have more on this in a little bit. savannah. >> al, thank you. this morning lawmakers are getting nuances about why the obama administration believes it is okay to use drones to kill expected terrorists including americans. it's an issue that will be key at today's confirmation hearing for the president's pick for cia. michael isikoff is calling this story for us. michael, good morning. >> savannah, good morning. drone strikes, the obama administration's weapon of choice against terrorists are coming under scrutiny. after a disclosure justice department document obtained by nbc news this week that justifies the targeted killing of americans suspected of being top al qaeda leaders. for the first time today the white house is sharing the classified memo that lays out the legal basis for such strikes with members of the house and senate intelligence committees. the move comes at a crucial time as john brenan, president

obama's nominee to be cia director, faces his confirmation hearing today on capitol hill. in the war over drone strikes, a major reversal from the white house. after years of ironclad secrecy, president obama directed the justice department to share with members of the house and senate intelligence committees a classified memo laying out the legal grounds for drone strikes targeting u.s. citizens who are suspected operational leaders of al qaeda. the shift follows mounting demands to see the memos from members of congress. >> they should produce this legal document. i don't think they should hold back anymore. >> i'm going to pull out all the stops to get the actual legal analysis, because without it, in effect, the administration is practicing secret law. >> the move comes two days after nbc news reported on this confidential 16-page justice department white paper that summarized the legal arguments for targeting u.s. citizens who

are suspected al qaeda leaders, such as american born anwar al. the white house called such targeted killing a lawful act of self-defense and concluded they did not require the target was plotting a specific attack in the immediate future. the contents of the memo drew sharp criticism from some legal scholars. >> it really looks like a subjective judgment by the american official who will make the call. >> civil liberties advocates say the white house move is not enough. >> it's a memo that really ought to be released to the public, not just members of congress. if the add manage is doing to be claiming authority to kill american citizens, it has an obligation to explain that claim and defend that claim to the public. >> the drone debate will be front and center when white house counter-terrorism adviser john brenan faces confirmation hearing to be new cia director. brennan has been architect and

one of its biggest defenders. >> it's this surgical precision, the ability with laser-like focus to eliminate the cancerous tumor called an al qaeda terrorist. >> brennan will be facing other questions during the hearing including what he knew about enhanced interrogation, such as waterboarding when he served with the cia during the bush administration. another thing to come up, his acknowledgement he's been questioned by federal prosecutors investigating national security leaks under president obama. brennan told the senate intelligence committee in a written statement he's been told by his lawyer he's only a witness in those probes. savannah. >> michael isikoff, thank you, a member of the intelligence committee, has pressed the white house on its drone policy. senator, thank you for being with us. >> good morning. >> first question, are you satisfied after saying the president was practicing secret law and stonewalling, are you

satisfied these memos are released to some members of congress? >> this is an encouraging first step. especially because it comes at a time when the lines have blurred between the military and the intelligence field and it's going to be so important to do robust congressional oversight to protect our civil liberty, also i'm going to make sure it leads to an expanded public right to know. >> let me ask you about the nomination of brennan to be cia director. you hinted you would pull out all the stops. does that mean you intend to block the nomination? >> first of all, i never announce my position until we actually had a confirmation hearing. i do believe what was done yesterday is a step in the right direction but there is so much more to do. there is still substantial questions, for example, about what kind of evidence is appropriate in these kinds of operations, whether the individual can be captured. there are issues with respect to

the geographic location of one of these operations. there is substantial additional work that needs to be done. it's really all about checks and balances. they have been out of whack in the past and that's what we've got to change. >> very quickly, to tie that up, are you still open to the possibility of blocking brennan's nomination? >> i'm committed to making sure we get all the facts. the president called last night, early this morning. i'm going to be going in to read the opinion. we'll go from there. >> let's take this beyond the theoretical. anwar al al awlaki, a senior operational leader of al qaeda. in your mind, is he an imthen threat, was he an imminent threat, or did he deserve more constitutional protections before the u.s. took him out. >> first of all, the rule, savannah, with respect to talking about the details here are very restrictive. you really can't get into individuals. you can't get into countries. you can't get into which agency

does what. i'm committed to making sure we strike a better balance of protecting american security and our liberties and our values, and i also think we ought can be looking at ways, in terms of the details about drones, to get more of that information declassified in a way that protects american security. >> finally, as you well know, 83% of americans approve of these drone strokes, two-thirds, from a poll taken a year ago, approve on american citizens in some cases. it basically suggests americans trust the government to make these decisions and carry it out correctly. is that trust misplaced, in your view? >> i believe the founding fathers thought the president should have significant power in the national security arena, but there has to be checks and balances. you can't just skirt those checks and balances if you think it's inconvenient. >> senator ron wyden, good to have your perspective. >> natalie, good morning to you.

>> good morning, everyone. a megamerger taking shape this morning as american airlines confirms plans. if airlines agree and merge, the new company will pull american out of bankruptcy protection. new images broadcast overnight by iran's state tv alleging aerial views were extracted from a cia drone captured back in 2011. the video shows kandahar, afghanistan. tehran claims its engineers have learned to create a similar drone of their own, thanks to the wreckage. a potentially vaccine strain of whopping cough has arrived in the u.s. they are investigating a string of cases from a germ previously spotted overseas in japan, france and finland. a new study suggests this strain may be the reason more people have been getting sick with whooping cough, a disease particularly dangerous for children. it is time to button up.

cbs is cracking down on the breasts, butts and other exposed body parts that become a red carpet staple at the grammys. in a memo to nominee and apprehenders, the network outlined what's unacceptable for broadcast, including, quote, thong-type costumes, visible exposure and beare curves. last night on the tonight show, jay leno decided to recreate the magic of the commerce with the supermodel, more than happy to oblige. >> i'm thinking, any chance we could recreate the ad? >> sure. pucker up.

>> looks like leno didn't get the steamy moment he was hoping for. >> don't judge. >> oh, my gosh. >> it took him a long time to realize. >> i give jay lots of points for that one. >> by the way, speaking of points, natalie, congratulations on wednesday. tell viewers natalie took part in the empire state building run to benefit multiple myeloma research foundation. she scaled 1,576 steps to the 86th floor observation deck in 17:05. >> i was actually coughing all night. >> that's really cool. you could have taken the elevator. >> i tried. they wouldn't let me. >> very impressive. >> impressive. apparently we were slackers last night. while natalie was doing that, savior was walking the runway at the heart truth red dress

fashion show for the american heart disease. >> i took 30 steps on a flat surface. >> 17:05 to make it down the runway. the dress is beautiful. >> it's a great cause. i know natalie has done it in the past. >> didn't have any wardrobe malfunctions like i did. >> congratulations to both of you. >> thank you very much. not red dress weather coming up. >> might be red parka weather, perhaps, that's as close as we can get. down south we have a lot of red on the map for severe weather. this is the moisture and energy that's going to combine and make its way up to the northeast later. look at the heavy showers and thunderstorms, risk of strong storms from mobile to savannah, all the way down to gainesville. rainfall amounts anywhere from three to six inches of rain, new orleans to raleigh. we'll get to your local forecast but first this message. >> good morning.

it is a chilly start on this thursday. the clouds will thicken up as we head into the afternoon. >> that's your latest weather.

matt. >> a controversy raging at a prestigious university. was a fraternity party at duke racist. michelle kosinski on the campus in durham, north carolina. good morning. >> reporter: that's right. this is all over a fraternity party, many felt had an offensive, even racist theme from the invites on. it led to a student demonstration here and the suspension of the fraternity. these are the invites sent out by kappa sigma to a party called asia prime with misspelling marking english and kim jong-il. >> i was hurt and angry. >> the result furious students at duke university. >> when you wrote hero duke, you were not just mocking an accent, you were mocking an immigrant's struggle to make it in this nation. >> reporter: wore word of the

party went viral and students complained. they sent out an e-mail changing the name of the party but it went on as planned february 1st. this week angry students posted flyers in protest showing photos of people in asian attire. protesters captioned if you're not outraged you're not paying attention. here a student wears a sumo costume with hashtag. >> made a mockery, reducing our way of life into a crude joke. >> reporter: one tweet, of all the things worth protesting, this is not one of them. another posted, i'm asian and i think the theme is hilarious. duke's vice president of student affairs says he takes it seriously but has no plans for formal disciplinary action. >> at the moment we're not aware of violations. acting boorish and foolish is not a violation. >> no comment. >> reporter: no one at the fraternity was talking. but in the school paper frat president apologized saying, quote, the duke community in

which we exist is one we see too often as divided. while our attentions have brought attention to and widened that divide, it is our sincere intention to work to contribute to a united duke. there was a meeting on campus and kappa sigma apologized to asian students. but the national fraternity has suspended it pending an investigation of this. this is a fraternity just allowed on campus this year after dissolving about 11 years ago over allegations of alcohol violation. matt. >> all right, michelle kosinski down in north carolina this morning. michelle, thank you very much. savannah. >> all right, matt, thanks. governor chris christie and his weight back in the light this morning after he lashed out at a former white house doctor who made critical comments about his size. mara schiavocampo has the latest on this. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. talk of governor christie's weight isn't new. this week he even joked about it during a late night appearance

but the governor didn't find anything funny about a former white house doctor about his health. >> he should shut up. >> reporter: that's governor christie's blunt response to comments from bill clinton's former doctor, a retired navy admir admiral. >> i find it fascinating that a doctor in arizona, who has never met me, never examined me, never reviewed my medical history or records, knows nothing about my family history could make a diagnosis from 2400 miles away. she must be a genius. >> she spoke about christie's weight on cnn. >> i'm a republican so i like chris christie a lot. i want him to run. i just want him to lose weight. >> people who have a medical license, have the privilege of having a medical license, should in my view conduct themselves more responsibly than that. >> my position is more than a democrat or republican. i worry about this man dying in office. >> my 12-year-old son comes to me last night and says, dad, are

you going to die? come on, this is irresponsible stuff. >> reporter: christie acknowledged he has a weight problem. a year and a half ago he was hospitalized from an asthma attack. >> my doctor warned me my luck is going to run out soon. it's something i'm conscious of. >> after years of david leno poking fun at his weight, christie and on the late show to show he, too, can get in on the joke. >> how is your cholesterol. >> dave, my cholesterol is normal, believe it or not. >> that's pretty good. what about your blood sugar? >> blood sugar, also normal. >> reporter: for dr. mariano, there's nothing normal about christie's health. on monday she replied to christie's complaints and say, it doesn't take a physician to look at him and know he's overweight.

a comment christie has heard before and takes in stride. >> i'm basically the healthiest fat guy you've ever seen in your life. >> in past interviews christie said he has been dieting 30 years and a major struggle in his life. he doesn't think it will interfere with his ability to hold any office, including president. >> mara schiavocampo, thank you so much. >> he has come out time stand time again and said, would i be healthier if i could lose weight, absolutely. would i be at less risk for heart disease and diabetes, absolutely. he really took offense to that line about dying in office in front of his kids. >> his kids heard it. >> crossed the line. >> to a doctor that hasn't examined him to make the assessment in a few years he could probably die, went too far. >> scary to hear. >> coming up, is it time for companies to crack down on personal internet use at the office? >> no. >> wait until you hear how much time people like savannah are wasting on a daily basis. >> wasting. i think wasting is a strong

term. maybe watching videos like this one, this 2-year-old's amazing trick shot. we're going to see what he can do live right here in the studio. >> you can do it. >> check it out but first this is "today" on nbc.

still ahead, karl rove with a blistering attack ad against ashley judd. >> the story after your local news. this day calls you.

to fight chronic osteoarthritis pain. to fight chronic low back pain. to take action. to take the next step. today, you will know you did something for your pain. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is a pain reliever fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one non-narcotic pill a day, every day, can help reduce this pain. tell your doctor right away if your mood worsens, you have unusual changes in mood or behavior or thoughts of suicide. anti-depressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not for children under 18. people taking maois, linezolid or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing skin or eyes. tell your doctor about all your medicines, including those for migraine and while on cymbalta, call right away if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles or serious allergic skin reactions like blisters, peeling rash, hives, or

mouth sores to address possible life-threatening conditions. talk about your alcohol use, liver disease and before you reduce or stop cymbalta. dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. take the next step. talk to your doctor. cymbalta can help. >> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. a baltimore city circuit court judge has dismissed a lawsuit by baltimore city comptroller joan. over the mayor's plan to install a con system. pratt -- phone system. pratt accused stephanie rawlings-blake of subverting the process.

here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> we of problems out there, dealing with an accident at o'donnell street, and delays at southbound 895 past the harbor tunnel. near i-95, watch for an accident on the southbound 95 ramp. at black rock road in trenton road and upperco, another accident of note. 19-minute travel time on the west side. this is what it looks like an aspirin to express my on padonia road. -- at the harrisburg expressway on padonia road. on average, 21 miles per hour towards 97. over to you, tony. >> the clouds thickening up over the next few hours, but we don't expect precipitation today. rain, snow, sleet, down to the south.

we should wind up with a 1 dry day, and then things will get interesting. increasing clouds. high temperatures between 37 and 42 degrees. there could be a mixture of light snow, sleet, or freezing rain developing tonight. during the day, it will be dry, and then we will have all kinds of precip, and with rain in the morning, changing to snow friday evening, friday night, snow early saturday morning, and that and it will clear out for the rest of the weekend.

that is 2-year-old titus ashby. yes, i said two. he just turned two. he sure knows how to sink a basket. it's netted him nearly 2 million hits online. he is now in our studio. this morning he'll take a few shots for us live. this kid has a future. he can stay out of foul trouble. this kid is going to go places, no doubt about it. 7:30 thursday morning, february 7, 2013. i'm matt lauer alongside savannah guthrie. >> that's a regulation size hoop over there. a regulation for

toddler. >> 7, 8 feet. >> i was impressed. anyway, speaking of young kids and sports, coming up a question a lot of parents have to deal with, how far should you push your kids or allow them to go with athletic activities. two sisters, 10 and 12, rising stars in endurance running. are they too young to race miles on end against people sometimes two or three times their age? we'll have that question. justin bieber's mom gets ready to host "saturday night live," which will be fun for us on nbc. >> first put down that smartphone or computer for a second. forget surfing the net. we're spending more than half our time at work on the computer doing things that have nothing to do with our jobs. nbc's kristin dahlgren in los angeles with details. good morning to you. >> sorry, savannah, watching a video of my niece getting her first ski lesson, only to prove

my point. some call it cyber lovering, slacking, what others call it, just another day at the office. >> solitaire? >> yeah. >> come on, admit it, you're not all business at work. >> i better do something, check facebook and check twitter. >> i think it's just the norm. >> researchers agree, a new study in the journal of computers in human behavior found between 60 and 0% of people's time on the internet at work has nothing to do with work. >> you've got to see this. it's a video of a baby panda sneezing. >> you may go to look at your e-mail and it's pretty easy to click over and maybe check your facebook site and what some of your friends are doing and maybe look at the news online. pretty soon it's not five minutes, it's an hour or two hours. >> the study suggests the only

way to change that behavior is to consistently enforce no cyber slacking policies. but that can be a fine line. >> if the atmosphere feels like big brother, then employee moral goes down. >> at this shoe company near los angeles, workers are encouraged to be on social media in the office. >> you can't separate the employees using facebook personally and then the business stuff we do and marketing we engage in on facebook and twitter. >> the lines have gotten blurred. >> we work on our vacations, checking out our e-mails but we also do a lot of our personal life types of activities while we're at work. >> some psychologists say occasional cyber distractions can actually limit boredom and increase productivity. who doesn't love a little youtube to lighten the mood. don't worry, based on the stats, your boss may be cyber are loafing, too. >> my bosses doing the same

thing i am. i'll find him on facebook and say, get back to work. he'll go, ha, you, too. >> the study found nine out of ten of us admit to some type of cyber loafing. my research around here, that last guy, number ten, he's lying. >> i was going to say 100%. kristin dahlgren, especially you, all the online shopping you do. >> i was thinking about it while the story was on, i probably spend 10 minutes a day. seriously at work. i do a little more at home but at work, 10 minutes a day. >> at work, three hours a day. just kidding. >> let's get a check of the weather from al. >> okay. hold on a s.e.ec. hold on. i'm sorry. let's take a look at what we're talking about today. we've got a lot of cold air to talk about up around the plains, northern new england, teens, 20s, single digits. you get down into southern florida, southern texas, temperatures are in the 80s. and as we look ahead and show

you today we are looking at wet weather through the south, northern storms, florida, georgia, wet weather along the pacific coast, snow showers across the coast as the clipper makes its way. clouds in the northeast. of course we're going to be looking at a major winter storm developing late tonight on into tomorrow. nt >> good morning. it should stay dry. the clouds will thicken up. a high near 40 >> with this big winter storm coming, it's going to affect air travel and all sorts of problems. check out the weather channel on

cable or weather.com online. matt. >> al, thanks very much. if you want to get into politics, you need to have pretty thick skin. actress ashley judd is learning that the hard way this morning. nbc capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell is explaining that. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, matt. ashley judd has a starring role republicans are promoting. they are trying to retool their brand. the big money super pack led by former president bush senior adviser karl rove is going hollywood. not far from the glamor of the red carpet, ashley judd. >> be a part of maintaining change and progress for our beloved country. >> has been auditioning for a new role, candidate. >> i will go wherever the president wants me to go. >> consider that a welcome gift to big time politics. >> someone from out of state who

understands us hillbillies. >> courtesy of karl rove ad team super pac. >> there are a lot of democrats in kentucky that are really pumping air into the ashley judd trial balloon for the u.s. senate run. this is kind of a fun way to prick the balloon and show people she might not be the candidate she's cracked up to be. >> using judd's own words and her current home address. >> someone who will never forget where she came from. >> it just clicked, tennessee is home. it just clicked -- >> kentucky. >> -- is home. >> judd was center stage at tennessee for the democratic convention. >> we are here to cast our lots with barack obama. >> but if she runs in her childhood home, the red state of kentucky. >> i am very proud to be a kentuckyan, judd would play opposite a well-known leading man, senate top republican mitch mcconnell. >> we'll worry about the

election in 2014. >> ashley judd responded with thanks to senator mcconnell, karl rove and their negative allies for all the attention as she considers her future political plans. republicans say after they lost a number of key senate races, the attack on judd is also aimed at reviving the confidence of gop donors. >> it is a big message to their donors that they are in this game still, that they are going to be a force, and that they are going to play rough. >> and ashley judd says she has not made up her mind if she will get into that race or any other campaign for political office. and this strategy from american crossroads will also target various candidates who are republicans, whether they are tea party, mainstream and so forth looking for some of those old clips and sound bites to make sure they really unearth all of that well in advance of campaigns to try to get, they say, the best candidate possible. matt. >> kelly o'donnell on capitol hill this morning.

kelly, thank you very much. up next, the marathon girls. these sisters, just 10 and 12, being pushed too hard to excel in a very grown-up sport? we'll talk about that right after this. [ female announcer ] start simple. ♪ start right. ♪ kellogg's simple grains cereals take you from seed... ♪ ...to spoon. with just a few ingredients. ♪

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youngsters who are making a name for themselves in a sport you may not expect. nbc's kate snow here with their story. >> good morning, savannah. if you have a kid good at running, might be on their school's cross-country, a kids triathlon. this story is about two young girls who are way beyond that. they are running races meant to challenge adults. in a sea of runners at the championship in hawaii, there are two you wouldn't expect, little girls from texas, kaytlynn welsch is 12, her sister heather is 10. it will take an enormous amount of endurance and grit to withstand these 12 miles but the welsch sisters are up to the challenge. they are two of the fastest and youngest endurance runners in the country. so fast, they usually outrun the grownups. >> do you like racing against

grownups. >> sometimes but when they say the bad words, we'll be like -- >> when you pass them? >> yes. >> do you get mad when people pass you. >> we don't say cuss words. >> their dad is their coach. >> at the start they are still up there fighting with each other or doing something silly. then it's time to start the race and they are all serious. >> you look good. don't let the pace guy fool you. you've got to run what you've got to run. >> do you have to try hard. >> it comes really natural to me. >> you get out there, just relaxes. sometimes it's really hard. >> they have each finished more than 100 races in the last two years, often back-to-back on saturdays and sundays. >> every since they were little bitty, i thought, golly, there's something special about these kids. >> rodney and their mom entered them in the first kids triathlon when heather was six and kaytlynn eight. soon they were entering adult

races. last year at age 11 kaytlynn ran her first marathon. is this running healthy for young girls. they see dan o'neal, a specialist in sports medicine. >> they are in great condition without any stiff joints, swelling, any evidence of any harm. >> there's no conclusive medical data on what happens to kids who run this much. the doctor does have some concerns. >> the one thing i worry about the most with the distances they are running, will they achieve their full skeletal growth. >> in hawaii, the course was a lot tougher than the girls imagined. as upsetting as it may be to see, it's not uncommon for heather to cry when she's racing. >> some people who watch the races when they see you crying, they get worried. >> yeah, they think my dad is pushing me and making me to run. i'm like, no, i'm fine, just crying. >> is your dad pushing you? >> he pushes me to get better, but he doesn't like make me run. >> you run because you want to

run? >> yeah. >> you sound like you're being kind of tough on them sometimes with words. >> yeah, i am. same thing with homework. do your best. >> the welsch sisters are both striving to do their best in hopes of fulfilling the same big dream. >> be on the big team would be a really big accomplishment for me and i would love that. >> i'm just trying to keep my speed up. one day i think i'll go to the olympics. >> your sister go to the olympics. >> i'll try to beat her. >> so the olympic games in 2020 maybe. but they are so serious about that dream they won't even accept prize money because they are maintaining their amateur status. it's a long road, of course, savannah, to the olympics. their parents are clearly hoping all this running at a young age will help them get to where they want to go. there are a lot of prodigies, kids who burn out who never make it that far. we'll have to see. >> incredible girls when you think about the mental discipline and physical discipline. they are fast, too. >> they are very fast. they outran me in seconds.

>> kate snow, thank you. can you see more on kate's story "rock center with brian williams," 10:00, 9:00 central right here on nbc. coming up a 7-year-old whose simple message is making a big difference in the lives of soldiers but first these messages. [ theresa ] certain things in my diet could be causing acid erosion. foods like lemons and tomatoes. when the enamel of your teeth erodes...it's not coming back. my dentist suggested that i use pronamel. by using pronamel twice a day... i feel more confident about my smile.

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>> reporter: 7-year-old john murray, jr., simple outreach started as he and his mom in grid were reading random messages on the walls of their local army medical center. >> we were playing a game saying every word we saw. >> reporter: john spotted some special posters with an unfamiliar word on them. >> i asked mom what's that. she started walking first. >> my first thought was, let's keep on walking through the waiting room like i didn't hear it. >> finally she bent down and said that word is suicide, and it's when someone takes their own life. >> reporter: his mother's explanation prompted john, jr., to dedicate his own message to troubled u.s. soldiers and veterans using post it notes. he simply wrote, "ask for help."

>> when they don't have any broken arms or legs and no blood, you can't see the sadness inside them. >> but they still need help. >> they do. >> so what should they do? >> ask for help. >> the 7-year-old could not have put it better. >> aler from john's mother reads the army surgeon general who then highlighted john's post it notes on the army's website. the lieutenant called the story beautiful and a lesson for all of us, a lesson that resonated with john's father, sergeant john murray sr. >> i don't think i've ever thought of it in those simple terms. sometimes we overanalyze. >> they say john's message needs only a postscript to civilians, talk about it. >> there's other people that care about you and want you to ask for help. >> reporter: help that can come from the smallest of sources as most simple of words. >> what do you hope happens to your message?

>> it becomes true. >> for today, nbc news, huntsville, alabama. >> amazing little boy. coming up, when courage is in fashion. the breast cancer patient putting a beautiful face on a brutal disease. >> after your local news. ♪ ♪ ♪ [ female announcer ] nothing gets you going quite like the power of quaker. today is going to be epic. quaker up. tell me i'm beautiful. tell me we'll grow old together. in sickness and in health. tell me that i'm still the one. that you need me. that i'm your super hero! tell me you'll never let me go.

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>> this is wbal-tv 11 news in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. here is sarah caldwell. >> delays to filter out. let's talk about what to expect pit one accident of note at black rock road and trenton road. crawling towards dulaney valley. 18 minutes to get you through that stretch. j.f.x. southbound showing plenty of bright lights towards 28 st.. on average, 38 miles per hour from ruxton road.

at 175, the speech continue from 100 towards the capital beltway was down 100 and route 10, a tricky rightwards 97. 10 miles per hour. >> clouds have been thickening up the last few hours. we don't expect is a vacation during the day. -- don't expect precipitation during the dead. the storm is expected to develop is in two pieces right now, what in the south, the other in the great lakes. it will develop the big nor'easter everyone is discussing in the mid-atlantic. exactly how much should now that develops will tell much snow we get in maryland. we could see a period of light snow or sleet developing tonight. during the day, just the clouds. the way it looks now is that we will start with the mixture early in the morning on friday

and probably some rain during the day, and that will change to snow friday night and early saturday morning and it should clear out for the rest of the weekend. just a little bit of a shift in the track of the storm will make a huge difference

8:00 now on this thursday morning, the 7th day of february, 2013. boy, did we feel it, the temperature is dropping here in new york city, tidings of things to come. 31 degrees out on our plaza this morning. snow is on the way. how much snow and when? al will have his forecast in a minute. >> i will. >> savannah guthrie and matt lauer and the aforementioned weather man al roker. >> a big weekend for snl, in the building just across the street from us this weekend. that guy there, justin bieber, will be hosting snl and will be the musical guest.

that brings the family to town. this morning pattie mallette, justin's mom is in our studio. lots to talk to her about. we'll do that in a couple minutes. >> we are also going to meet a much younger star, 2-year-old titus, who became an internet sensation sinking all these baskets. he is live in our studio. matt says he can dunk on him. look at this kid. he's amazing. we'll see how good coming up live in just a minute. >> before we get to that, natalie is over at the news desk with today's headlines. >> i'm so impressed by titus. thanks savannah, matt, al. more than 10 million americans are bracing for this massive storm that's threatening to pummel the northeast and dump 2 feet of snow on parts of new england. forecasters say wind gusts reaching 75 miles an hour could also cause coastal flooding. blizzard watches are being posted and airlines are preparing for significant travel

disruption. white house counter-terrorism chief john brennan facing tough questions about u.s. drone strike policy. at a senate confirmation hearing to head the cia. on wednesday president obama ordered the justice department to provide congress with classified documents on the legal justification for using drones to target american terror suspects overseas. the fbi says no additional explosives were found in the underground bunker where gunman jimmy lee dikes held a 5-year-old alabama schoolboy hostage for six days. the child, known as ethan, seen her in photos taken before his ordeal. two pipe bombs were safely removed after the police raid monday that rescued the boy and killed dikes. the u.s. anti-doping agency has granted to lance armstrong an extra two weeks to decide if he'll speak with investigators under oath about his use of performance enhancing drugs. meantime a dallas company is suing armstrong to recover $12 million it paid him in bonuses for winning the tour de france

seven times. now for a look at what's trending today, a quick roundup has you talking online. the dog whose human-like face became an internet sensation is now up for adoption. take a look at these pictures of tonic. it melted hearts online after the poodle shih tzu mix was rescued and sent to an animal welfare group in indiana. david beckham's new body wear ad has him dashing through los angeles wearing little more than tattoos. it has had more than a million youtube views in one day. a little controversy here. some twitter users think a beckham look alike, body double, may have been spotted in some scenes. a woman in tel aviv has to fight back after her car was towed after being parked in a handicapped spot. the trouble is it wasn't a

handicapped when she parked there. she showed city workers painting the markers around her car before towing it and slapping her with fines. the video vindicated her after she posted it on her facebook page. city officials are now apologizing and waiving their fines. can you believe that? 8:04, back outside to al with a check of the weather. >> that is amazing. smart lady. went to the videotape. you guys got a dance going? >> yes. >> where? >> next weekend, penn state dance marathon supporting pediatric cancer. >> that's a good cause. thanks so much. let's see what we've got for you. this big storm system getting together, we've been telling you about it. snow advisories, freezing rain advisories back through the great lakes, here in the northeast winter storm watches and blizzard watches. wind gusts up to 75 miles an hour with coastal flood watches as well from new york up.

the two systems will merge, transfer energy off the coast. then we've got a lot of snow and a lot of wind of that's why we have blizzard watches in effect. snowfall amounts, take a look. we're talking anywhere from six to nine inches, buffalo, new york, just north of new york city. but the big numbers from providence, boston, manchester and portland, two feet or more won't be out of the question for >> good morning.ck up three feet it is a chilly start on this thursday. the clouds will thicken up as we head into the afternoon.

>> and that's your latest weather. >> thanks. coming up, justin bieber's mom, we'll chat with her live. then we'll shoot some hoops with titus, the 2-year-old basketball phenom. later, jenna bush-hager with the real cia agent behind the movie "argo." but first these messages. focus, not their short-term agenda. [ woman ] if you have the nerve to believe that cookie cutters should be for cookies, not your investment strategy. if you believe in the sheer brilliance of a simple explanation. [ male announcer ] join the nearly 7 million investors who think like you do: face time and think time make a difference. join us. [ male announcer ] at edward jones, it's how we make sense of investing.

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at at&t. there has been a lot of talk in recent years about adhd and drugs that help people cope. this morning a heartbreaking story about a family in virginia who lost their son after his struggles with a pill prescribed for that disorder. they thought their son was on a path to success. >> he planned on doing some great things. >> richard fee was an athlete with a full scholarship to college, college class president and an honors graduate trying to get into medical school. >> he was your normal, every day kid, active. good grades in school. it just all came easy to him. >> but when he moved back home after college in 2009, his family discovered he was taking

medication for adhd. >> when he told me, i said, you don't have adhd. why are you taking it? he said, well, it helps me study. >> these medications do enhance your ability to focus, be attentive, have a little bit more energy, be able to sustain your attention and study for a longer period of time and that's something a lot of kids desire. >> after low scores on the medical college admission test, his parents said he began taking much higher doses of adderall then prescribed and having mood swings. they barely recognized their son. he was suffering from dilutions and paranoia. >> it was tough to watch, watch him go through that. >> so the the fees complained to the doctors who prescribed the drugs. >> it was having drastic effects. we went to these doctors to get it stopped. they wouldn't listen to us. >> the fees grew scared of their own son, locking their bedroom door at night. in late 2011, richard fee hanged

himself in his bedroom closet. >> i believe the doctors share in the responsibility. >> "new york times" reporter allen schwartz first reported the story. >> it wasn't the medication that did the harm here. it was the people in charge of the medication. >> two of the psychiatrists who prescribed adderall to richard fee would not talk on camera. the doctor who works at this virginia beach clinic who said, i am saddened, not as much as they are, by the death. he was a wonderful young man. he told "new york times," he was pitching me very well. i was asking him very specific questions and he was very good at telling me the answers in a very specific way. and quote, i do feel partially responsible for what happened to this kid. >> richard's family joins us now. his parents rick and kathy and his younger sister. dr. nancy snyderman, nbc's chief

medical editor. my condolences on your loss. when richard came home in 2009 and you learned he had been taking medication for adhd, did you know how long he had been taking it? >> we didn't know. he like many kids got adderall from fellow kids in college. >> was it years, two years he had been taking it? did you ever figure that out? >> he started getting prescriptions in 2008. >> at least a year. >> at least a year. >> just to be clear, he had never, ever been diagnosed with adhd? had there been problems in school earlier? teachers, administrators saying he had some kind of learning problem? >> he never showed any signs. from the research i had done, when it shows up in adults, there's usually signs through early childhood. no signs through elementary school, middle school. >> you tell the story he really started to have problems when he started taking higher doses. you confronted the doctors.

something you said in that spot, they would not listen to you. you're concerned parents, concerned for the safety and healthy of your son and you couldn't get information? >> we couldn't get any information from the doctor prescribing. he basically wouldn't speak to us on any level. not as a doctor speaking to a parent or a human being. >> privacy reasons? >> he stated he had talked to a previous family and he got sued. he was worried about himself. >> this is hipaa. >> this is downside of patient privacy where doctors have to have some common sense, when they see a child in crisis -- even though we're talking about a young adult, still a child, abusing prescription drugs, underlying psychiatric problems and it's time to loop the family. >> from the company who makes adderall, here is a statement. a schedule 2 controlled substance, the package soeshs risks with incorrect dosage,

abuse and recommends doctors properly monitor patients. this is not recommended for patients with a history of drug abuse. adderall is one of many prescription drugs subject to abuse. do you have any doubt your son was addicted physically and emotionally to this drug? >> i have no doubt at all, absolutely none. it's a very dangerous drug. it changed him from the person that he was to what he became. we just could not get any help from the doctors, as much as we pleaded with them and told them what was going on. >> rare, extreme? are we looking at one case that is not representative of the total? >> yes. but one kid dead is too many. so we have to remember that when properly diagnosed, that means with testing, locate a child's history, and the lowest dose necessary, it can be a great drug. but 50, 60, 70, 80 milligrams, a child exhausting a month's supply in 14 days, those are huge warning signs and psychosis and paranoia that comes with it,

it's a real crash and burn scenario. >> one doctor charles parker talking about prescribing the drug said he was pitching me very well. i was asking him specific questions. he was very good at telling me answers in a very specific way, making it sound like your son knew exactly what he was doing in trying to continue his use, because he was addicted. >> correct. that's correct. at the same time before we saw dr. parker, he was seeing a therapist. i actually sat down and talked to her and told her the issues and what was going on. you know, she was trying to work with us. but still the next month richard went back and they increased the dosage of the adderall. that's what we don't understand. >> the helplessness you felt as a family, as parents, i want you to bring you in at the end. you're a student. >> yes. >> is this something you hear a lot about at school? clearly your family has a cautionary tale. is this something you hear and see about?

>> everyone is joking, exams come up and they say i need an adderall to stay up all night. i hear it in the library. >> it's a reminder, the face of drug addiction is white suburban kids that can get their hands on medication. it doesn't mean you have to be down and out. >> properly used. >> properly used fine. when you gain the system, these kids know what to say to doctors. when you can buy something for $5 or $10 bucks from your roommate, we're in a crisis. >> in case there are other richards out there, i think it's great you're coming forward sharing this story, and i know how painful it is. we appreciate it. we'll be right back after this. the capital one cash rewards card gives you 1% cash back on all purchases, plus a 50% annual bonus. and everyone likes 50% more... [ midwestern/chicago accent ] cheddar! yeah! 50 percent more [yodeling] yodel-ay-ee-oo.

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back at 8:20, justin bieber just reached a major career milestone. he's now the youngest artist to have five chart topping albums in a weekend. he's appearing on "saturday night live" as host and musical guest. one person sure to be watching is justin's mom pattie mallette. good to see you. we want to talk about justin. this is an exciting weekend. one of the reasons you're here, you wanted to talk about your involvement in a movie called crescendo. >> yeah. >> this tells the story of beethoven's mother who while she

was pregnant attempted to have an abortion and even attempted suicide while pregnant with beethoven. you were part of this movie, even one of the producers, it's pro-life/anti-abortion purpose. you feel like people are getting the wrong message about what you are trying to say by your participation? >> yeah. i don't feel that it is a pro-life message. people are going to get from it what they want to. it's a true story. it's a historical piece. the reason why i wanted to get involved with this film was because, you know, i lived in a pregnancy home my whole pregnancy with justin. this is going to be used as a tool to raise money for pregnancy centers. so regardless of your stance, pro-life, or whatever it is, i just think that anybody would want to help girls in need if they need a place to stay. >> do you feel misled at all by producers of the film?

if the film has this message and its goal is to -- is an anti-abortion message, are you okay with that? i guess i'm confused about what your position is. >> it's not anti- -- to my knowledge, it's not an anti-abortion message, anti-abortion film. it's just the story of beethoven's mom. she tried to have an abortion, she tried to commit suicide and was unsuccessful. that's just the plot and line of it. >> you wrote in your book a lot about how hard it was to be -- to have an unplanned pregnancy. >> yes. >> how the pregnancy center helped you when you were pregnant. >> it helped me so much. for me, i'm not trying to make a political stance. the media says all kinds of stuff about where i stand and what i'm saying. like justin, i'm not trying to get involved in that stuff. so i'm here just to help the girls find a place to stay when they are pregnant and, you know, it really helped me. it saved my life. >> justin is doing snl this weekend. we were talking about it before.

he's been the miss cal guest before. this is the first time he's host and musical guest. is he nervous? are you nervous? >> yes. i think we're both nervous. he's been working all week and practicing and helping write skits. he's excited. >> how is he doing? he's 18 years old now. one of the things you wrote about in your book is how hard it was in a way to let him be part of this music industry because you've seen all the horror stories and you have all those worries. how is it being a mom now as he's getting older and able to make his own decisions? >> it's tough letting go and letting our kids make the mistakes they need to make. i just have to trust that he's made good decisions in the past and hopefully he's learned from some of my mistakes. >> real quickly, of course, everybody watches his personal life. we know about his relationship with selena. i don't know if moms get a vote, but are you hoping they keep it going? >> you know, i just try and support whatever he's wanting, and i think she's a sweetheart.

whatever they decide is great. >> we'll be watching this weekend. pattie mallette, it's great to catch up with you. thanks for being here. >> thank you. >> a reminder, you can see justin bieber on snl 11:30, 10:30 central time on snl. cuteness alert, may be basketball's next biggest thing. >> incredible shots. this video was posted on youtube sunday. already 2 million hits. >> titus is here with his parents kristin and joseph and his siblings. good to see you guys. >> the whole family. >> titus just turned two the end of january. when did he start doing this? when did you notice this? >> a little after he started walking. >> he started shooting baskets. >> when he was little he started snuggling with me and watching nba on the computer. >> i was talking to you in the greenroom and he was like, can i

do more, more? he wants to do it all the time of he says more hoop. so he's been enjoying himself this morning. >> your other kids, did they do similar things when they were titus's age. >> i don't know if any of them were so interested in basketball like that. >> you say he has a video, doesn't like to miss. you have a pretty good percentage. that was tough. >> that looks hard. >> he starts on the little one, goes to the middle one. he's been thinking some on the bigger basket as well. >> and trick shots, too, by the way. >> we got him to do the trampoline shot on the break. >> do you work with him all the time? >> i home school the kids and he is little. so he doesn't really have assignments. so he just runs off to the hoop. >> on the head. >> the rebound shot. >> the next trick shot video, off the brother's head. >> did you play basketball. >> as a hobby, pick up

basketball now and then. >> you want to hand him the ball? we hear that might be the secret. >> all right. >> savannah. >> i want to mention on the side i'm also a sports agent and i'd like to talk to yoli >> this is wbal-tv 11 news in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. 95 in harford county is a mass. >> completely at a standstill, as you can see from this live camera. the accident is prior to 543. take route 1 as your alternate bid at southbound lanes unaffected. accident off to the right shoulder, not having an impact

of their. eight minutes on the outer loop northeast side. j.f.x., not much better. looking at delays from ruxton road to 28th street. accident coming in at route 49- 78. and john collins joins us with a look at the forecast. >> 39 degrees at b.w.i. marshall, 782% the humidity. -- 72% de muammar gaddafi. there is a storm brewing. -- there is a storm brewing. it will turn out to be a coastal storm. we will be on the south edge. how deep into the edge? that is the question. stay tuned, we will keep you informed.

the clouds will dominate. 37 to 42 the high. variable winds at 10 miles an hour. >> we are back with another update at 8:56. avor

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it's 8:30 now on a thursday morning, 7th day of february, 2013. as we say hi to nice diehards here on the plaza, the wind starts to pick up here in the northeast. this is much the calm before the storm. this is supposed to be actually a pretty nice day day. then the snow comes in tomorrow.

i'm matt lauer along with savannah guthrie, natalie morales and al roker. >> we saw the movie "argo." coming up, jenna bush-hager sits down with the agent who was the inspiration for the real story. finding out about the back story. women battling breast cancer, changing the way women diagnosed with the disease with a fashion shoot, showing true courage, all about the disease. >> she's got a fascinating story, took beautiful pictures but took pictures that really show what breast cancer is all about. we'll hear her message coming up. >> savannah and i are scheduled to be in chicago tomorrow, having a little fun in the windy city. we are scheduled to be there, that's our plan. but we are keeping a close eye on this big storm headed to the east coast. part of this storm came through the upper midwest and great lakes area. >> they have some rough weather in chicago and upper midwest right now. that clipper moves through and

then -- i think you guys are going to be okay. >> okay, al. >> chicago, great town to be in. >> that's tomorrow on "today." meanwhile, mr. roker, how about a check of the aforementioned weather. >> okay. we've got heavy weather down to the south. that's the moisture part of this system. up to the north you can see over iowa, low pressure. that's bringing snow and ice. that's the cold part. that's going to combine off the coast tomorrow. now, we've also got today wet weather along the pacific west coast, snow through the rockies. tomorrow we've got rain beginning. by late in the afternoon, icy conditions here in the new york area snow starts to spread to the north with gale force winds as you move to new england. sunny and mild gulf coast on into texas, west coast as well. some rain making >> good morning. it should stay dry.

the clouds will thicken up. a high near 40 >> that's your latest weather. don't forget, get that weather especially with the storm coming in. any time day or night, weather.com online. any time you need a smucker's jar, go to willard. willie. >> smucker's jam, biscuit, nothing like a winter treat. happy birthday to smucker's, we love our treat and we love you. ethel mogil, 100-year-old today from omaha, nebraska. she has a motto, have faith in tomorrow and god will take care

of today. lester haley from lake stevens, in the great state of washington. he's 101 today. proud world war ii veteran. he plays a saxophone, makes bill clinton jealous he's so good. happy birthday to you. rena ayers is 108. st. augustine in florida. she loves to bake things. bakes cakes and cookies and good things. very active in the civil rights marches years ago. how about that. and ervan and pearline frisk, linden, california. 75 years they have been married. they love telling stories. they laugh and have fun. they are friends. can't beat that. rochester, new york, that's a great town, edward statt, he's would not of their favorite sons, 100 years old today.

secret to longevity, eat health yrgs and grow your own veges. helen, take a look at helen, lubeley from st. louis momo. 100-year-old. love st. louis. meet me in st. louis. start add famous bakery, as a matter of fact, lubeley's bakery. sells all sorts of good things. now back to new york. they have got some good bakeries in new york, too, bagels. >> willard, thank you very much. coming up, the story of inspiration for any woman dealing with breast cancer or for anyone who knows someone who is. we'll have that story for you. first this is "today" on nbc. fa

inspiring people all around the world.

the suspect, jill conley, a kentucky woman battling cancer who is out to prove that women with breast cancer can still feel beautiful and sexy. jill is with us now along with her husband and photographer. good morning. i'm going to say at the outset, i don't know if we can do justice to your story in four minutes. let's tree. at the age of 31, six months after you were married to bart you found out you had breast cancer. you've had chemo, radiation, double mastectomy. how are you feeling now? >> today i feel awesome. i have good days and bad days. right now i'm feeling great. >> started with photographs that actually a girlfriend of yours took. what was the purpose of the photograph? >> when i went to seattle, i wanted her to take pictures of me, because i wanted before breast cancer, to turn them in. they don't ever show what breast cancer looks like. they talk about it but don't

show it. i wanted her to take pictures of my breasts, so people can see what cancer looks like. i just wanted people to feel -- know that when you're going through it, before, after, that you can still be beautiful and sexy. that was my whole point of it. >> let's be clear, these photographs are very raw and they are very real. that was kind of your purpose. >> that was my purpose. >> bart, what did you think about this project? >> i mean, just amazing. before i found out that she had cancer, i had never seen it. i know so many men, even women haven't seen it. to me it's just shows how much courage she has but shows everybody how it's okay to be sick and be beautiful like that. i just think it's amazing. >> something really wonderful happened. your friend got in touch with a very renowned portrait photographer. sue, you were giving these photos to critique them as a professor but obviously they touched you. what did you decide to do?

>> i was actually teaching a photography class live on a world broadcast and live in seattle. she contacted me, jill's friend, and asked me to critique them. she writes on the e-mail that jill wanted to tell her story. i have quite an audience. so i thought, if i could just tell her story to my audience, maybe someone could write it and tell the story. then i met jill on skype and i just thought, i have to photograph her. >> you did more than that. you said, i'm flying you to paris for this fabulous shoot. we've been showing some of these pictures. jill, what did that mean to you, to get to have this fairy tale? >> it was a dream come true. i told her in paris for five days i felt like cinderella. i didn't feel like a cancer patient, the way that her and the rest of the girls made me feel was unbelievable. >> part of the photographs, also this documentary that was filmed, this 15 minutes. you can find it online.

it's incredibly moving. once again, jill, you decided to bare all. >> yeah. >> was this a courageous thing to do? >> no. i don't know, i wasn't. you know what, this is what god had a plan for me, and this is what i have. accept it and embrace it and be proud of it and rock it. so that's what i did, and that's what i'm still doing, so i wasn't. >> you're a woman on a mission. that is for sure. what do you hope comes of this. you've had so many views of this video and these pictures. it's had this worldwide resonance. what do you want to happen? >> i just want women and men all around the world just to feel confident with their body even if they don't have cancer. i just want to get the message out to women that if you're diagnosed tomorrow, already were diagnosed just to feel confident and beautiful and accept your body and embrace it. >> i know you have a challenge

for victoria secret, the runway show. >> victoria secret if you're out there, call me. i would love to be able to, not me but any woman wear the million dollar bra and maybe victoria secret have a line for women going through cancer. right now it's very selective. >> these photographs are so beautiful. i think what's really beautiful is you. bart, the love story we see in this documentary is amazing. we wish the best of luck to you. thank you for being here. >> thank you. thank you so much. >> really a pleasure. coming up, we'll talk to jenna bush-hager who tracks down the real cia agent behind the hit movie "argo." first this is "today" on nbc.

. >> we're back at 8:44 with oscar

leader "argo." recently traveled to maryland in search of the cia agent who spearheaded the daring rescue of americans in iran. >> good morning. kevin costa hark inside and robert and a few other names we'll probably never know but his real name is tony mendez, a legend in the cia known as the master of disguise. >> what's your middle name? what's your middle name? shoot him. he's an american spy. >> it's a story that could have been left out of our history books. >> a better idea than this? >> this the best bad idea we have by far. >> that idea was "argo," conceived and implemented by top ranking cia agent tony mendez. he convinced iran that "argo" was a science fiction film and led americans to safety. >> this american hero did this mission to save six lives and did it with this most outrageous

cover story. his ingenuity and inventiveness struck me. >> mendez served as cia's chief of disguise, an artist in charge of creating cover stories to rescue people from dangerous situations. and iran in 1980 was as dangerous as it comes. >> nervous? >> we call it the gut check. when it starts groaning, listen to it, check it out, about 90% and you go. >> this artist's canvas was the world stage of espionage. it was a high-stakes career that took shape seren dip tusly. >> you answered an ad. >> an artist with the u.s. navy. being an artist i answered and ended up in a motel room on the outskirts of denver in an interview with this kind of shady guy who put a bottle of

jim beam up on the table and said, son, this is not the navy. so that was the beginning. >> three decades later, the veil of secrecy is lifted. mendez tells his story for the first time with a new book and film. >> this year in hollywood has been a big year for the cia. >> yes. >> do you feel like they get the essence of what the cia does right? >> mostly movies about the cia, they have the cia guy a deranged assassin. what we're hoping is we're going to start a new trend and make the cia guys loveable. i'm the first loveable spy. >> this retired spy now lives in the blue ridge mountains of maryland trading the art of deception for a different kind of art. he now paints full time. his wife is a photographer, a spy, too. >> i was at cia for 27 years. i worked in the office of technical service where tony

worked. if you needed very special photography cameras concealed in all kinds of things -- >> like what? >> buttons, writing pens, key fobs, perfume atomizers. lipsticks. we were the gadget people. we supported operations around the world. >> i've heard one of your favorite things is when people thank you for your service? >> it's what you do, keep the world safe. people recognize that. that's a good thing. >> no one is thanking you for your service when you work at cia. they don't even know you work at cia. so after the fact to have someone walk up, it is, it brings tears to my eye. >> today mendez's service to his country is front and center. we now know he served in the cold war, faced down enemies at the berlin wall. his story no longer secret. >> never got credit for anything

he did, nobody ever knew about it. one of the things i really wanted to do with this movie is hold him up and say this is an american hero. >> now the film "argo" is trying to make history, too, at the oscars. >> are you hoping "argo" wins? >> are you kidding me? >> that's a yes. >> yeah. >> we'll have our fingers crossed. >> yeah. we'll blow up their car if it doesn't happen. >> i thought you said the cia guys are loveable. >> they are. >> but you don't want to get them on your bad side. >> that's right. >> needless to say iran didn't like the film too much. not only is it banned there, they are coming up with their own version of the movie. mendez says he's going to be sure to watch it, that you always have to keep up with the enemy. he's going to watch it and he wants to see who will play him. >> he has this dry sense of humor. jenna, appreciate. much more on nbc "today"

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we're back now, 8:51 with radio show host, sports columnist and best selling author out with his 18th young adult novel called "game changers playmakers." tells the story of a middle school sports star who learns the value of good sportsmanship, which is always a good lesson. mike, always nice to have you here.

talk about the book. twoont ask you about lindsey vaughn. bad skiing accident in austria. torn acl, broken tibia, she says she'll be back to the olympics. can it happen and is there too much pressure to make the comeback? >> the pressure will be sl self-imposed. you now look at what adrian peterson did in the national football league. not everybody is him. the template has been established for how soon. >> you say self-he endorsed, don't huge endorsements that rely on olympic style place pressure on her? >> i think they do. we're going to find out how important one more olympics is to her. because when ryou're in that gy and doing all the stuff she has to do, i don't think you're thinking about dollar signs at the end, you're thinking about gold medals. >> let's talk about the book. you like writing about pressure on young athletes. here comes ben mccain again.

what's going on with him? >> ben has just come out of the football season, thrown a doug flutie pass. >> a hero. >> this is what he would have been like at 11. all of a sudden he gets knocked down big time in basketball. a kid moves in that's a little bigger, a little louder. all of a sudden ben has to ask himself why do i play? because he gets obsessed with beating this kid. >> what's the lesson here? what are you trying to communicate to your young readers, especially those who are athletes? >> not every book can end with somebody throwing the game winning pass. that was a big thing for me. so ben's team is not going to win the championship in this book. he's got to ask himself -- >> you just blew the ending. >> no. because there's a game at the end that feels like a championship. he's going to ask himself why i play. it's about teamwork, it's about friendship and it's about love of the game. he rediscovers that by the end of this book. >> it's funny, because as a parent of two boys and a girl and one boy who is 11 and goes

from baseball to basketball, basketball to baseball, it made me ask the question, how much do we let our kids play. is it good to let them go from one to the next to the next. or would it be good as some parents do, no, you pick one, then take time off. >> matt, every team i coached for my children i'd gather children around, see those adults in the stands, every one of them would change places with you today and be 11 and have one more saturday afternoon to play with and against their friends. and if there's one thing that comes through in my books, i don't feel that these kids think it's a job. in this book it comes to be a job for ben and then he rediscovers his own love of the game. >> i'm not saying it's a job but when you look at an 11-year-old kid that's got three practices a week and then the game and those practices are held during times he could be doing homework, it's a big chunk of time we ask our kids and these kids ask to take

on. >> yes. i agree. it's funny. in my books i never make it more than two practices. i don't break the two practice rule. i think sports, the sports in my books, the lessons that come out of that, the one thing we talked about in another book, it teaches kids how to get back up after they are knocked down. there's a thing that happens that makes people cheer. if somebody had told me when i started writing these books, i was at a middle school yesterday, 500 middle schoolers stood up and cheered talking about books yesterday. something about these books is connecting with them. >> as some books from my childhood as well. glad you keep writing them. 8:55. natalie making a recipe close to your lart after local news.

>> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. after three days of deliberation, a jury convicts michael johnson of the second- degree murder for the death of north carolina teenager phylicia barnes, who went missing in 2010

while visiting family in baltimore. her body was found four months later in the susquehanna river. back in a minute with a check on

>> the weather tomorrow maybe a little dicey at this time, but today looks fine. we have a high temperature expectation of 37 to 42. variable winds at 10. mostly cloudy skies. pretty nice day except for the clouds.